Uncaged
by coldnovemberrain
Summary: Sequel to Complicated. Scarlett has completely adapted to her new life in Paris, but what will she do when someone from her past shows up?
1. Chapter 1

The sequal has arrived ! I loved writing this story so much, it just needed a sequel. This chapter is more a prologue, it shows Scarlett's life in Paris. Don't worry, Bane or Bruce will make an appearance probably next chapter. But who exactly will make an appearance, that will remain a surprise. Enjoy reading!

* * *

'Un pain de chocolat et un café, s'il vous plaît' Scarlett asked the waiter. Each Saturday she had breakfast at the same cute little café on the corner of the street where she lived. She had never been more in love with a city except for Paris, it seemed as if Gotham had been erased from her memory.

Scarlett checked her watch to see the time. _He was late_, she thought, _he's never late…_ Even though she had left the past behind her, she couldn't help but worry when someone was late, always afraid that something might have happened to them.

'Voilà' the waiter said, before placing a plate with the pain du chocolat and the coffee on the table. Even Starbucks was nothing compared to their coffee. Scarlett smiled politely after she replied 'Merci'.

Luckily she had picked up the French language quick and easily. It was a beautiful language and a lot more fun to speak than English, but she still had some problems with some of the pronunciation.

Eagerly Scarlett took a sip from her coffee, completely not aware of Julien sliding on a chair besides her.

'I'm sorry I'm late' he placed a kiss on her cheek and immediately summoned the waiter to place an order.

'You got me worried' Scarlett smiled relieved.

Even though Julien was a Frenchman, he preferred talking English to Scarlett. He had told her he had to improve his English for his job, so she could help him. He did the same for her with French.

He wore a simple white shirt on top of some dark denim, just the way Scarlett liked it. His hair was dark and luscious, and it seemed to sit perfect every day. Scarlett herself wore a sweet summer dress, paired with some simple heels.

'I had to pick something up.'

Julien smiled mischievously, Scarlett couldn't help but wonder why, but decided not to ask. Asking too many questions had gotten her into trouble before.

'Why do you always pick the same thing?' The Frenchman asked, nodding towards the pain du chocolat.

'I just love it!' Scarlett with her mouth half-full.

They enjoyed their breakfast while talking away. Scarlett loved that Julien always had something to tell, he could always make her smile.

When Julien finished his omelet and paid the bill he took Scarlett's hand. 'I'm taking you somewhere' he said mysteriously.

Scarlett narrowed her eyes, 'where?' she asked doubtful.

'You'll see' Julien teased, before placing a kiss on her lips.

_How am I supposed to resist him?_

Obediently Scarlett followed him, wondering where he was taking her.

Julien assured her it was only a short walk away and just when they were about to arrive he placed his hands over her eyes, covering them.

'What are you doing?' Scarlett asked, giggling.

She listened to the sounds around her, to try to indentify where she was, but she couldn't hear anything distinctive.

Scarlett had lived in Paris for almost a year now, and she had loved every minute of it. The apartment she lived in was as big as the one she had in Gotham, but this one was in a much better neighborhood. The money that was left was all invested in her education. As far as Scarlett was concerned, what had happened in Gotham, had stayed in Gotham. This was her life now, and Gotham was no part of it. She hadn't told anyone about what had happened, not even Julien, Scarlett felt that they didn't needed to know.

Of course she had to admit she did wonder who had send her the money. It could've been anybody, and Scarlett would probably never find out who had send it, which seemed fine by her.

Slowly Julien moved his hands away from her eyes, revealing a picnic plaid complete with a retro basket. Rose petals covered the plaid and in the corner of her eyes Scarlett could spot a violin player softly playing a tune she didn't recognize.

'What is this?' she asked somewhat insecure. _Is this what I think it is?_

'Come, sit' Julien placed his hand on the small of her back and softly pushed her towards the plaid.

The spot he had chosen couldn't have been more perfect. Once Scarlett sat down she could see the perfect view they had over the Eiffel Tower.

Julien handed Scarlett a glass of champagne.

'It's 11 o'clock in the morning' Scarlett giggled nervously.

'You don't have to drink it, but I do want to ask you something.'

And then Julien moved down on one knee.

Scarlett had to gasp for air, her mind was completely clouded.

'Julien' she whispered, not believing her eyes.

'Scarlett, mon chérie' he started, still down on one knee.

He took a small box from the pocket of his jacket, and carefully opened it.

'Will you do me the honor of becoming my wife?'

When Julien opened the box it revealed the most beautiful ring, simple, yet elegant with a large gem in the middle, shimmering brightly in the sun.

'Yes' she said smiling before kissing him.


	2. Chapter 2

Thank you **crosbyfan21** and **clear-purple-skye** for the quick reviews, it really makes writing this fic worth it! Please enjoy!

* * *

Even after a few days Scarlett was still in complete awe of her ring. She couldn't quite believe yet that she was engaged.

She had to get used to waking up next to her fiancé, next to her future husband. Scarlett had never imagined herself getting married, yet here she was.

'I want a fall wedding' Scarlett said. Her head was placed on top of Julien's bare chest, both were woke up by the wailing sirens of a police car.

'The city is much more beautiful during the fall'

Scarlett could feel Julien's hand softly stroking her hair.

'What's fall?' he asked her.

'Automne' Scarlett replied smiling. It was so adorable when Julien didn't know what a word meant.

'Whatever you want, mon chérie.'

Even though Scarlett didn't want to, she really had to go back to school, she couldn't afford to miss more classes. Before walking out of the door she quickly kissed Julien, but of course he pulled her back for more.

'Julien, I really have to go' Scarlett said with difficulty, trying to break off the kiss. 'We'll have plenty of time for this when we get married'

Julien kissed her one last time. 'Au revoir' he said smiling.

Her school was a little while away from her apartment, (or should she say 'their' apartment now?) so she had to take the subway.

Class seemed to be less busy today. Scarlett was probably among on of the oldest in the room, _and the most wise probably_. The girls were gossiping about boys, and probably about Scarlett. She never really tried talking to them, they reminded her too much of the girls she had met during…, you know.

She sat down on a chair which was the most close to the exited. Scarlett had never seen the man who sat next to her before, but then again she never really paid any attention to her classmates. Still she smiled politely while she got out her laptop to type down exactly what the teacher was going to say.

'Hi' the guy next to her said. The man had scarcely any hair, although Scarlett assumed he had shaven it. Both of his arms were covered in tattoos. Only now she noticed he didn't had a bag with him…

'Hi?' she replied awkward, not sure who this guy was. _Don't be suspicious, he's probably new, _Scarlett tried to reassure herself.

'Nice ring' he said nodding.

'Thanks…'

Thankfully the professor started talking and Scarlett had an excuse not to talk to the man. She started typing away on her laptop, trying to look as busy as possible.

'Okay guys, time for a fifteen minute break!'

As quick as the could Scarlett stood up, snatched her laptop from the table and started walking over to the restrooms. She had a bad feeling about this guy.

Just as she was about to enter the ladies room, an arm blocked the entrance.

'Excuse me?' she exclaimed, completely taken by surprise.

'How is Julien?' the guy who had been sitting next to her said, a somewhat wicked smile covered his face.

_This can't be happening_. Suddenly Paris felt like Gotham all over again. Every little detail came back to her, it was as she was still living there.

'I don't know' Scarlett tried sounding tough. 'Because I don't know anyone named Julien'

Denying she knew Julien was worth a shot…

'If you say so…' the man said. He moved his arm out of the way to let Scarlett pass, which she quickly did.

She locked herself inside one of the bathrooms to catch her breath. Clutching her laptop tightly she was almost on the verge of tears.

Promptly she got her phone out of her pocket and started calling Julian.

_Please pick up, please pick up._

She wasn't sure what the man had meant with 'How is Julien?' but something told her it wasn't good.

'Bonjour, chérie' Julien said when he picked up.

'Thank god' Scarlett softly sighed.

'I just wanted to hear your voice' she told him. Scarlett didn't want him to worry about her, so she tried to sound as natural as possible, proving to be difficult as she was almost crying.

'You're so sweet' Julien replied.

Scarlett listened carefully to his voice, trying to make out any irregularities, but he sounded just fine. _Maybe I'm imagining things…_

'I've got to go again, I'll talk to you later. I love you!' Scarlett slid the phone back into her pocket.

Returning to class wasn't an option, but so was leaving the restroom via the main door. Quickly Scarlett scanned the room, there was only one window and it was pretty high up, but she could make it. Firstly she threw her bag and laptop through the window, praying to God that it wouldn't break, before sliding her body through the window.

Scarlett let herself fall on the ground. The window was a lot higher that she expected and the fall hurt a lot more than she thought. Scarlett reminded herself that she had experienced pain a lot worse and ignored it. Thankfully her laptop wasn't broken and before she knew it she made her escape for the subway, occasionally checking behind her to see if he wasn't following her.

Once she was actually seated she could finally really breathe again. She wasn't sure what just had happened but she prayed that it wouldn't happen again. The logical explanation had to be that the guy knew Julien and was just simply asking how he was. _Don't be such a paranoid_, Scarlett reminded herself again.

The ride home was quick and she hadn't spotted the man, which made her much more at ease. She slid her ticket through the gate to exit the subway.

'Ma'am, I'm sorry but you have to come with me'

Having a feeling that was directed towards her, Scarlett turned around to see where the voice was coming from.

What seemed like a police officer was waiting behind her. Afar she could see other police men waiting, ready to back-up if necessary.

'Why?' Scarlett asked.

She wasn't in the mood for this nonsense, not after what happened this morning. She got through the gate just fine so she didn't really understand what the problem was.

'There is something wrong with your ticket' the office said.

'No there's not' Scarlett said determined.

By passers started to look at the scene that was going on.

'Yes there is, come with me, ma'am' The officer extended his arm.

'I'm calling the police' Scarlett said, reaching for her phone.

'Ma'am, I am the police' The officer sighed.

'Last time I checked, French officers don't have an American accent'

Demonstratively she put the phone to her ear after dealing 112.

Then all hell broke lose.

Before Scarlett knew it the officer had snatched the phone out of her hand and threw it away. Suddenly there were twenty more officers, all armed. Also the officer who had been talking to Scarlett had pulled a gun from his holster. Everybody around them stopped moving, some of them moving to the ground, probably thinking this is was terrorist attack. Scarlett could only hope this was a terrorist attack, but something told her it wasn't.

Scarlett wanted to defend herself, but it was no help. Multiple fire arms were pointed at her, she had to cooperate. _I can't believe this is happening to me, again_.

'Where is Julien?' Scarlett demanded to know.

'He won't be harmed' The officer reassured her.

'Who are you?'

'Shut up and maybe I'll tell you later'

As soon Scarlett was seated in a car most of them hid away their guns, except of the two that were guarding her. She had no idea what was happening right now. Did they also seize Julien? Did he knew that she was in big trouble? With no cell phone it was impossible for her to contact him…

Scarlett did as she was told and didn't speak a word the entire way and nobody spoke to her, which gave her some time to review the situation. _I have to let Julien know, I'm alright, I have to_.

'You're going to meet someone' The officer started, even though he wasn't really an officer. 'and I'm sure you will pretty excited to see him.'

Scarlett shrugged and didn't reply. Who could she possibly want to see apart from Julien? If they did harm him Scarlett swore she was going to kill the one who harmed Julien. _Again, I will kill someone, for love, this better not become a habit..._ Quickly she pushed the thought away and hoped she wouldn't have to. They had promised her they wouldn't harm Julien.

They pretty much had to push her out of the car and across the building, Scarlett refused to really walk. The building they entered looked just like any regular Parisian building, nothing special. Even on the inside it was the same, just could almost say it was old and stuffy, not what she expected at all…

The officer knocked on the door of what seemed to be the main reception room, and waited for an answer. A few seconds later the door swung open.

'We have her' he simply stated. Scarlett couldn't see who was in the room, but she would find out soon enough as she was allowed to enter.

She rolled her eyes as the officer guided her to the room.

'She isn't very cooperative' he told whoever was inside the room.

'A leopard never changes it's spots'

Chills ran down her spine. That voice she just heard could only belong to one person. This could not be true, he was dead. Well, she didn't know for sure, but she assumed he was dead, he looked dead when they took him away. He had to be dead, but he wasn't. Scarlett could feel her heart pounding in her chest.

_The man who sat in front of her was Bane…_


	3. Chapter 3

Thank you, **crosbyfan21**, **Cheekymonkey97**, **clear-purple-skye, tribute14, xxyangxx2006 **and a lovely **guests** for your reviews 3 Enjoy this chapter!

* * *

The doors had closed behind her, but Scarlett wanted nothing more but to leave this place. She banged her fists on the door, crying to let her out.

'LET ME GO!' she screamed, hoping that someone would hear her.

This was just a bad dream, Scarlett told herself. In a few moments you'll wake up and nothing of this has happened. Bane is dead, this can't be true, this isn't real.

But for some reason the touch of his hand on her arm felt very real. 'Scarlett, please…' he tried to calm her down.

Scarlett flinched at his touch and immediately pulled her arm away from him. 'Don't touch me' she warned. 'I watch you die, this is a dream, this isn't real…'

'You know this isn't a dream, Scarlett' Bane had taken a step back to give her more space.

Scarlett couldn't bring herself to look him in the eye, she didn't want to see him. Finally her life was perfect and then he had to ruin it.

'Let. Me. Go' Scarlett demanded, still looking at the floor. She feared that when she would see him her feelings would come back, she had feelings for Julien now, that couldn't happen.

'I'm engaged, you have to let me go' Scarlett traced the ring with her thumb, still not sure what had happened to Julien.

'I know' Bane replied. 'We didn't harm Julien'

'You better' Scarlett snapped back. She turned her back to Bane.

'Scarlett it doesn't have to be like this' Bane tried moving closer to her, but again she took a step forward.

'If you knew I was engaged, if you knew I was happy, why do this to me?' Scarlett asked. With her finger she traced the scar the bullet had left behind, the only thing she had left that was still connected to Bane.

'Why would you leave me for Wayne?' Bane snarled.

_I didn't see that one coming_. But it happened almost over a year ago, why ask these questions now?

Scarlett turned around, now face Bane. He had a new mask. It still looked as terrifying as the old one he had, but by the looks of it they had made some modifications to it. Whereas the mask was new, his clothes were still the same. He was just as she had remember him.

'I didn't' Scarlett started. 'I came back for you, I tried to save you. But your men pushed me away'

'You left the prison'

'You couldn't keep me hidden in a prison for ever, I had to get out, I couldn't stand it anymore' Scarlett tried to explain.

'You left with Wayne…' Bane raised his eyebrows, his eyes piercing into Scarlett's.

'I know… But I immediately regretted my choice, that's why I tried to safe you…'

Scarlett doubted whether Bane believed her, but Scarlett still had a hard time believing this was actually happening.

'But no offense, you kidnapped me, twice…'

'I had to get answers' Bane replied.

'Well you have them, can I go now? I have a life to live' Scarlett walked over towards the door and tried to open it, but it was still locked.

'You can't marry him'

'And you can't do this to me' Scarlett replied, sighing softly. 'I'm sorry'

Scarlett could see that she had hurt him, but he couldn't except that she just came running back to him. For a year she had assumed he was dead, it was all a lot to take in.

Bane unlocked the door, probably realizing this was no hope. Scarlett smiled faintly, before walking out of the building. Somehow she knew this wasn't the last time she saw him, Bane usual got what he wanted.

One of Bane's men offered to take her home, but Scarlett could use some fresh air, she had to process this before she could return to Julien.

A feeling of guilt went through her when she unlock the door to her apartment. Should she tell Julien about Bane? Even though she didn't do anything wrong, somehow she still felt bad.

'You look like you've just seen a ghost!' Julien said when he spotted Scarlett entering.

_I guess I just did…_

'It's nothing, just a long day.'

The next few weeks she hadn't heard anything from Bane, nor had she seen any of his men. Scarlett was unsure why she was saddened by that, something inside her desperately longed to see Bane again. Each day Scarlett tried to push the feeling away, but somehow it still kept coming back.

Autumn arrived soon and the whole wedding had been planned perfectly. Luckily Julien liked planning it so Scarlett didn't really had to do anything except pick color-schemes and of course shop for her dress.

Dress shopping had been the most amazing experience. She had tried on so many different styles but finally she decided on a tight-fitted strapless chiffon dress, the bodice all lined with lace. It was just perfect.

Both of them decided that they didn't want a big wedding, so they kept it small, limiting it to only a few close friends.

'I can't believe you are getting married!' Lola said excited. Lola had been her friend from the very first day she arrived in Paris. She had shown her around and introduced her to Lucien.

Lola reminded her of Alex. She hadn't spoken to Alex since she left Gotham. Scarlett had no idea where she was but she hoped everything was going alright for her.

'Me neither…' Scarlett said, faintly smiling. Wedding nervous had taken over her body, she could scarcely hold anything without it falling out of her hand.

'You still want to do this, right?' Lola asked, uncertain.

'Of course!' Scarlett replied convincing.

Lola helped buttoning up her dress while the hair dresser touched up her hair, which she wore in a soft bun.

Scarlett didn't have her parents with her to walk her down the aisle, but she didn't mind walking on her own. She felt like she had lived her life pretty much on her own so it didn't really made a difference.

The whole ceremony was lovely and simple, just as they had planned.

But when it was almost time to say their vows, Scarlett felt uncertain. Did she really want to do this? Seeing Bane after a year had revived something in her, she hadn't realized how much she had missed him.

'I'm sorry' Scarlett suddenly whispered softly to Julien, who stood opposite of her holding her hands.

He raised his eyebrows, not sure what she meant. Scarlett let go of his hands.

'I can't do this. Something happened to me a year back and I thought I had come to terms with all of it, but I haven't. You don't want to marry me, Julien, not if I told you what I have done. I'm sorry for lying to you, I hope you can forgive me someday…'

Without waiting for an answer Scarlett was outside of the little chapel where they were supposed to get married . The driver was waiting outside with their car, ready to take them to the hotel where they were going to spend the night. He too looked confused, seeing Scarlett all on her own. By now tears were rolling down Scarlett's cheeks. Quickly she got inside the car and told the driver to take her home.

_Home is where the heart is…_


	4. Chapter 4

Sorry for the long wait, but I got really stuck halfway. Next chapter will be up sooner, I promise! Thanks for all the lovely reviews, I really enjoy writing this story. Hopefully I can keep it interesting for you guys :)

* * *

Unfortunately home was hard to find.

Bane was long gone. The building where they had brought Scarlett had been completely empty. She had scanned the whole city, looking for Bane or his men. But it all went without any luck.

She had hoped Bane would be still around, but Scarlett was wrong. He was probably in a different city, always moving around. The problem was, which city?

Scarlett had moved to a hotel, she wanted to avoid any possible contact with Julien. Besides, she really wanted to focus on finding Bane. All she needed was a plan…

Basically locking herself in her hotel room, Scarlett tried making up a plan. But it all came back to one thing: she had to 'infiltrate' Bane's men. She didn't exactly know where Bane got his men from, but they were all mercenaries. Scarlett would hit the town later on to ask some questions to learn more about this.

The bar had a tough look, it was definitely not a place Scarlett would normally go to. She could feel all eyes on her when she entered. Trying not to grab too much attention, Scarlett walked over to the bar and ordered a drink for herself.

Her eyes scanned the room. _Who looks like he could be a mercenary?_

The problem was that each person in the bar could be a mercenary as far as she knew.

She decided she wouldn't find out anything unless she went around asking. With her drink in her hand she walked towards the guy which fitted the mercenary look perfectly, whatever the look was.

Scarlett smiled as their eyes met and she leaned forward to the guy to make herself hearable.

'I'm looking for a guy you might know' Scarlett began. She figured she could best immediately ask about Bane, he was quite well-known in the 'underworld'. 'Bane' she added.

The guy frowned and shook his head. 'Never heard of him' he replied with a French accent.

'Thanks anyway' Scarlett said, but she had already reached the next possible mercenary.

Scarlett had tried almost everyone in the bar, but no one knew a guy called Bane. This was proving to be harder than she had expected.

There was no point in asking any more people tonight, the bar was about to close and Scarlett was feeling exhausted. She decided she would try again tomorrow night in a different bar.

She quickly finished her third drink of the night before walking out of the bar.

The night air felt cool on her skin as she left, but she enjoyed the feeling. Winter had always been her favorite season and after the wedding she couldn't wait for fall to be over.

'Hey missy!' a voice shouted from behind her.

Somehow Scarlett felt like the voice was talking to her, so she turned around the find a guy standing a few feet away from her.

Scarlett looked around to make sure he was talking to her and not to someone else, but there was no one standing on the street except her.

'Can I help you?' Scarlett asked cautiously.

The guy moved closer.

'I heard you were looking for someone' he said to her.

'Maybe, I am' Scarlett replied.

'I might happen to know where he is'

'How do I know I can trust you'

Scarlett had grown very cautiously of all the strange men who approached her lately.

'You don't, but as far as I know I am the only one in Paris who knows where he is'

She had to give in, this was probably her only chance to find Bane.

'So tell me' Scarlett said impatiently.

'It doesn't work that way, sweetheart' he said, moving even closer to her.

'Well, it doesn't work that way either' Scarlett snapped back, taking a step back.

'Feisty, I like that' The guy smiled.

Scarlett raised her eyebrows. 'Just tell me where he is, please'

'Okay, you win' the guy teased, which Scarlett ignored.

'He's probably in Amsterdam'

'Probably?' Scarlett replied. 'I need certainty'

'That's all I know, but why are you even looking for him? You don't look like a mercenary…'

'Because I'm not a mercanery' Scarlett whispered.

'Thanks for the information, you better pray you're right' She turned around from the man, leaving him behind. Ignoring him when he shouted: 'Can I at least know your name?'

It looked like Bane was moving around a lot. She sincerely hoped he wasn't planning to blow up another city…

After she reached the hotel she couldn't keep her eyes open anymore. She jumped on the bed and slept for 12 hours straight. When she woke up the following day she immediately bought a ticket for a flight to Amsterdam that same afternoon.

She didn't had a lot of stuff to pack, since almost all of it was still in her apartment, or should she say Julien's apartment now? Scarlett wondered if she should let him know she was going to Amsterdam, but decided not to. The less he knew the better.

The flight to Amsterdam went smooth, and before she knew it she touched down on Dutch soil. She had never been here before.

She checked into a hotel in the centre of Amsterdam. It was busy in the city itself, which meant there were a lot of people to ask them about Bane, but it also meant that it was probably even harder to find him. If he was even here…

Scarlett didn't know any Dutch words, but luckily for each Dutch person she met spoke English really well. But just like in Paris she ha no luck. Frankly she had no idea where to look, so she started to wander around the city, hoping that she might run into him or some of his men.

If she had only returned to Bane when she had the chance…

The plan of infiltrating his men wasn't going as well as she had hoped. But suddenly Scarlett thought of something which really could turn her whole plan around. If this wouldn't work, she didn't know what would…


	5. Chapter 5

Thank you for the reviews! Also I want to ask if you guys would like it if I somehow managed to write Bruce into this story, or do you want it to be about Scarlett and Bane only? Have fun reading!

* * *

Scarlett firmly pressed her hands on her bandaged breasts, which were now not noticeable at all. She figured that as a woman she was never able to find Bane, but as a man, who knew? Scarlett knew he was always looking for new men to add this his army, this way was the only way to find him.

Her breasts were already bandaged, now only she had to do something to her hair. Even though Scarlett really didn't want to, she decided to cut it. _It'll grow back_, Scarlett repeatedly told herself when she cut it.

Her new name would be John, simple. Scarlett was sincerely hoping this plan would work, otherwise she went through all this trouble for nothing.

Scarlett examined herself in the mirror, checking out her new self. _Bane better like this short hair…_

Only after the first night on the town Scarlett already noticed a difference. She had lowered her voice and had talked to a lot of men, but sadly none of them knew Bane. However they all didn't look at her like she was a possible flirt for the night, she actually got taken serious. One guy even told her that he would look into it.

The following day she tried again.

'You happen to know somewhere where I can make some money?' Scarlett asked a guy. 'Quick money?'

To her surprise the guy replied: 'I might happen to know a guy'

Even if it wasn't Bane, it was a beginning to get in contact with the 'underworld'.

'Meet me tomorrow' the guy pressed a note with an address in her hand, before walking out.

When Scarlett looked at her note she noticed that she hadn't cut her nails, she really had to get this man thing down if she was to be any convincing…

Scarlett got up early the following morning, making sure to trim her nails so she could really pass for a man. It had been dark last night, but in broad day light someone might notice something different.

It was past noon when she arrived at the place where they were going to meet. In the back she already spotted the guy, who introduced himself as Kyle, but Scarlett wondered if that was his real name…

'So there is this guy who is always looking for guys helping to reach his objective' Kyle explained. 'No one really knows what the objective is, because your not allowed to talk about it'

'Kind of like Fight Club?' Scarlett replied. Talking in a lower pitched voice was harder than she had expected.

'Yes, kind of like Fight Club' Kyle laughed.

They started walking in the opposite directing of where they had come from.

'I can introduce you to some men, it pays well, but you have to do anything he orders you to do'

Scarlett didn't dare to ask who 'he' was, so she just nodded.

'This seems like the thing I was looking for'

'Great' Kyle said.

They had taken a cab to the place were 'he' was hiding. Scarlett wasn't sure if Kyle meant Bane, but she would soon find out.

The headquarters was a short drive away from Amsterdam. The building looked like a large barrack, which looked like it hadn't been used for quite a while. Somehow Scarlett got the feeling that the look of the barrack was intended, making it look like it had been empty for some time and there was no large group of mercenaries hiding there.

The area was quite remote, which somewhat scared Scarlett. If something were to go wrong today, there was nothing there could be done to save her, no one could try to save her. _At least I'll die trying to find Bane…_

No one asked her any questions. She got a tour of the barrack and they told her some stuff about what they were doing. Scarlett noticed that all the men were dead serious about their job, no one was messing around.

Each of them introduced themselves to her. There was a real connection between each and everyone of the men, it was like they were brothers, and soon they would have a sister.

Even after spending a few days on the barracks not one of them had mentioned Bane. Scarlett was seriously doubted if she had done the right thing… If she even had infiltrated the right 'gang'.

'John, get over here!' David yelled from the front of the barrack. Scarlett was still in the back, chatting with Kyle.

She walked over to where the sound was coming from and found David standing in front of table. When Scarlett got closer she noticed the whole table was covered with guns.

'Take your pick' David said. 'You have proven yourself'

Scarlett didn't know which gun to take. _Was this a test?_

There were various types of guns laying on the table, shot guns, machine guns, rifles, you name it. Scarlett decided on a rifle. She liked the look and feel of it when she held it.

The following day she was told she was to go along on her first mission. Hoping to maybe see Bane, she of course decided to go along with it.

The mission went smooth. They had driven to another city (Scarlett wasn't sure which city) and gotten some information from a guy. Scarlett was mostly there for back-up.

To her surprise the mission actually paid rather well, so far everything went without any trouble.

During her time with the men she had travelled all over Europe, having a mission in cities she hadn't even heard of. Fortunately for her, all the other men did the 'dirty' work, she had yet to fire her weapon and planned on not using it for as long as possible.

Concealing her true identity was hard. She was not able to pee, shower and undress in front of her colleagues. Luckily the men didn't really ask any questions, they didn't really care who you were, as long you did your job alright.

'So have you actually met Bane?' Scarlett asked Kyle during dinner. They usually had dinner in their hotel rooms, ordering room service. Today they were in Ukraine, and who knew where they were heading next.

'I met him once' Kyle swallowed a bit of food. 'In Russia'

Each time she spoke Scarlett had to remind herself to lower her voice. 'What was he like?'

'Intimidating'

That made Scarlett smile, probably only she knew there was also a vulnerable side to him.

'You'll probably meet him soon' Kyle added.

'I'm looking forward to it' Scarlett replied.

However two months passed and still no Bane.

_I can't wait around for it to happen, I have to take matters into my own hands_.

Scarlett decided to ask David. He had been promoted to running a group of mercenaries for Bane, he would probably know where he is.

'David, I got to ask you something' Scarlett said, walking towards David.

They had a day off, but usually they all stayed at the current HQ to revise their plans and missions.

'Ask away' David said, while continuing to study some maps.

'I wondered if I could meet Bane. I like to know who I'm working for'

'No one gets to meet him, unless he wants to see you' David replied.

_If he only knew who I really was._

'And mostly when he wants to see you it's bad' he added.

Scarlett had seen Bane kill his own men before, but he would never harm her.

After waiting a few hours, the showers were finally free. Scarlett chose the shower most out of view and started undressing. She liked the feeling of taking the bandages off, it reminded herself who she really was, not just some mercenary, but a woman. Scarlett had gotten too comfortable being John.

When she walked out of the showers, dressed, she noticed everyone standing together. Wondering what they all were talking about Scarlett walked towards them. _Why didn't they call me? They never excluded me from instructions before…_

'John' David said. 'We were waiting for you'

As she approached them she noticed that all of them were armed.

'Although I wonder what mother would call her daughter John'

_Fuck_.

'What?' Scarlett said, trying to act like she didn't know what was happening.

Instinctively her hand grabbed her handgun, but it wasn't there. She had taken it off before showering and forgot to put it back.

David moved closer to her.

'From the beginning I didn't trust you, but I had to gain evidence, and now I finally have it.'

Someone handed David a photo. He held it up, revealing a picture of Scarlett showering. He held up another, a picture of her cutting her hair off back in Amsterdam. _How did he get these?!_

Scarlett's cheeks flushed red, embarrassed by the nude picture. Probably each and every one of them had taken a good look at it.

_What do I do now?_

Unlike the prison, there was just no way out of here. There were at least twenty guys standing in front of her, all armed. She didn't even have a knife to defend herself.

'Who do you work for?' David asked, throwing the pictures on the ground.

'Work?' Scarlett said, frowning. 'I don't work for anyone'

'What information about us have you passed along?'

'I don't have any information!' Scarlett said desperately.

'If you are not willing to give us what we want, we have to make you' David nodded and before Scarlett knew it her hands where tied up behind her back and she sat down on a chair.

'Please, I'm telling you the truth' she tried to explain.

But they didn't listen. A guy named Liam moved forward and punched her right in the face. Scarlett could feel the blood trickling down from her nose.

'I know Bane' she muttered, her mouth was filling up with blood. _Please make them stop_, _please_.

'Sure you do' David said. 'I'm not asking again, who are you working for?'

_One more hit and it's all over_. Scarlett could feel herself going numb, she couldn't take much more from this hitting before she was going to faint.

'What the hell are you doing?' Scarlett could hear a voice saying. She couldn't see who it was, her vision was blurry as hell, but she recognized the voice well.

_Bane_.

'Interrogating an infiltrator!' David said.

'She is telling the truth you imbecile'

Scarlett couldn't really see what was happening, but from the sounds if it, Bane just choked David.

But then she also couldn't hear anything anymore. Everything went black.


	6. Chapter 6

A short chapter for you guys, but I really liked the cliffhanger at the end (spoiler, lol) so I decided to stop there. I hope you like it and please review!

* * *

Slowly Scarlett opened her eyes and let it adjust to the light. The first thing she felt was her head, it pounded and pounded, like someone was constantly hitting it. She tried rubbing her eyes with her hands, but it hurt too much, they were probably battered and bruised.

Suddenly everything came back to her, her exposure, the hitting and Bane.

Once her eyes were adjusted she found him sitting by her bedside.

'How are you feeling?' Bane asked.

Scarlett hoped he wasn't too angry with her. He had to know that all she did was because she wanted to be with him.

'Great' Scarlett said. 'That was not sarcastic, by the way.'

She meant it, she was feeling great. Finally Bane was at her side again, although, she hoped.

'Be honest with me' Bane said.

In the bright light of what seemed to be a hospital room, Scarlett finally got to take a good look at him. _He had gotten even more scars…_

'I'm serious' she replied.

Bane chuckled. 'Still stubborn'

'You know me'

'That was a brave thing you did, infiltrating my men' Bane continued.

'I'm sure you would've done the same' Scarlett replied.

It felt good looking Bane in the eyes again. She hadn't realized how much she had missed them.

'I would have come up with a better plan, though' Bane teased.

Scarlett rolled her eyes. 'I'm sure you would'

Bane was wearing his usual attire, a black tee, cargo pants and military boots. Scarlett herself was wearing what looked like a hospital gown.

After all the travelling around Europe it was hard to keep track of where they were exactly. She couldn't remember where she was last…

'Where are we' Scarlett asked, eager to find out.

'That's none of your concern, you just get better' Bane said. 'You were brave, but stupid'

'But I did find you' Scarlett defended. 'How did you even know I was in Paris?'

Bane's eyes narrowed.

'I hired someone to make sure you were alright' Bane said slowly.

'You spied on me?' Scarlett asked indignant.

'I had to make sure you were alright, that nothing would happen to you'

'I didn't even know you were alive…' she said. 'If I had known, I would've come back to you!'

'I couldn't risk it. I had to let the world think I was dead' Bane explained.

Scarlett nodded understanding, although it did feel weird that Bane had spied on her the whole time…

'Did you know about Julien as well?'

It must have been hard for him, knowing she was with Julien. Personally, she couldn't imagine Bane with someone else but herself.

'There is something you need to know about him…' Bane began.

A lump formed in Scarlett's throat. _Oh dear god, what could this be?_

'Maybe it wasn't exactly coincidence that you two met and fell in love… What if he was one of my men'

'Are you implying you hired him, just like you hired a spy?' Scarlett said full disbelief.

'He was the spy'

'You have got to be kidding me' Scarlett mumbled.

'Didn't you trust me?' She asked.

'I don't trust the rest of the world. I didn't want to see you get hurt again. Don't be angry, it was for your own good…'

'Excuse me?! I just found out my fiancé was hired! Of course I'm angry'

'You are sexy when you're angry' Bane smirked, trying to lighten the mood.

'Shut up, I'm serious' Scarlett didn't see that coming. She had really loved Julien and had always thought he loved her back. _Was everything a lie?_ 'Could you please leave me for a moment'

Bane hesitated for a second, but eventually stood up from his chair and walked over towards the door. 'I don't even know why you went to Paris in the first place' he said, now angry too, before shutting the door behind him.

It was only after Bane was gone for a few seconds Scarlett finally realized what he just said.

_Why did you go to Paris?_

Scarlett figured after she encountered Bane in Paris that he had given her the ticket. But if Bane didn't give it to her, who did?

_This day was getting stranger and stranger._

Later that day a doctor came to check on Scarlett. He examined her and went through some of her files. The doctor told her she was everything was fine, except that she still suffered from a mild concussion.

'I shall prescribe you something for the pain' The doctor told her while writing it down.

Scarlett nodded gratefully. He also gave her a book; 'To keep your mind off things' he added.

She could use a little distraction. Scarlett had imagined the reunion between her and Bane a little differently.

After reading a few pages of the book Scarlett couldn't bear it anymore. She had to know where she was. Slowly and carefully she got out of bed, softly placing her feet on the ground. With each step she took towards the window her head started hurting more. Somehow she had gotten used to the pain, she didn't know whether it was because of the medication or because she had gotten stronger. Scarlett hoped it was the latter.

The curtains were closed. Scarlett opened them, revealing a skyline filled with a million little lights. She knew this place. She recognized it. She had lived here.

It was Gotham.


	7. Chapter 7

This chapter was really hard to write, but hopefully I have lost my writer's block. Enjoy and please review!

* * *

Scarlett could hear someone entering the room. She kept her eyes fixed to the skyline, taking up every little detail. Wayne Tower was still standing high in the sky. Scarlett wondered who was running it now Bruce had died…

'You need to rest'

'You need to tell me what we are doing in Gotham' Scarlett turned around to face Bane. 'I left this place for a reason'

'I have to finish what I have started' Bane explained.

'Do you really have to risk your life again?' Scarlett had lost him once, but she wasn't going to leave him twice.

Bane didn't say anything, which practically meant the answer was yes.

Scarlett sat down on the hospital bed.

'I wonder if I did the right thing' Scarlett suddenly said. 'Coming after you'

Not sure why she said that, Scarlett waited for an answer. She wasn't liking anything Bane had done so far, the spy, the wedding and Gotham.

'I gave you a chance' Bane replied. 'You should've come with me then'

'And leave everything I had behind? I had build up a new life! You can't expect me to run straight back to you' Scarlett snapped back. 'How was I supposed to know you were alive?'

Bane never lost eye contact with her while she spoke, listening to every word she said.

'I hired to spy, because I didn't want you see get hurt' Bane answered. 'I did it for you'

Scarlett understood where Bane was coming from. She had to admit it was nice to have someone watching over you, protecting you. But still it felt strange knowing everything that happened between her and Julien had been fake. She wondered if Julien had ever loved her.

'I just wish you had come to me sooner' Scarlett said.

'I know, but I couldn't'

Scarlett turned her head towards the window again. She wondered how Gotham had fared since the disappearance of the Batman. Did anyone know Bruce had been Batman?

'What exactly are you planning to do here? The Batman is dead' Scarlett said, still gazing at the skyline. She had to admit Gotham was quite beautiful at nighttime. _But not as beautiful as Paris_.

'You mean Bruce is dead?' Bane replied defiant.

'Yes, him too'

Scarlett had enough of this quarrelling between them.

'Could you please leave me for a moment? I would like to rest' Scarlett moved around on the bed until she found a nice spot to sleep in.

'And close the door, please' she added.

Bane didn't reply, but left the room. Shutting the door on his way out.

That night Scarlett hardly slept. She kept wondering about if this was the right decision. Their reunion didn't go as she had envisioned it, quite the opposite.

The curtains were still left undrawn. Scarlett watched the sun come up, disappearing behind Wayne Tower and reappearing again. Somehow it felt peaceful, even though she knew chaos was all around her.

Breakfast was simple hospital food. Not very tasty, but not bad either. Scarlett figured she must look horrible, after hardly sleeping and having a bruised face, the chances of looking good had to be slim. But she didn't really care anymore, at least this way she would show Bane where she had gone through for him.

To her surprise Bane entered the room. To be honest she did not expect him to show up this early on the day.

'Are you feeling better?' he asked, leaning against the wall just besides the door.

'A little tired' Scarlett replied honestly.

'I'm sorry for what happened'

Again, Scarlett was surprised. She figured Bane didn't apologize often.

'Thanks, that means a lot'

The fact that Bane just apologized made everything a lot better.

'I did miss you' Scarlett continued. 'You have to know I never cared for Julien as I cared for you'

Bane blinked a couple of times before saying something.

'I know' he replied.

His reply bothered Scarlett. Why couldn't he just replied, 'Me too'…?

She raised her eyebrows, expecting more of an answer.

'Maybe some fresh air will do you good' Bane continued.

'I'd rather not go outside' Scarlett said, looking outside the window. The sun had risen and was shining brightly above Gotham City. Gotham had looked quite beautiful at night, but right now it looked horrible.

'You can't stay inside forever'

'Watch me Scarlett said defiant.

'Don't be like this' Bane crossed his arms over his chest.

'I never wanted to come back to Gotham. I only wanted to be with you' Scarlett replied.

'We'll be out of Gotham soon'

'How soon? A day, a month?' Scarlett asked.

Bane didn't reply. Scarlett figured even he was still unsure what his plan was exactly.

'I have to go, I'll be back later' Bane said.

'Okay' Scarlett replied.

When Bane left she decided to go to sleep again. There was nothing to do for her anyway. Unfortunately she couldn't go back to sleep. Bane was still bugging her mind. She just couldn't figure out why he was acting so strange…

Scarlett wasn't planning on going outside any time soon, but she could still explore the hospital she was in.

She quickly put on a bathrobe over her hospital gown and left the room. To her surprise the hospital was bursting with energy. It seemed like each of Bane's men had a room for his own. There were still some doctors around, but not many.

Scarlett started walking around, not really sure where she was heading. She did not recognize the hospital and the people in it. Had no one of Bane's men who she knew survived?

'Excuse me?' Scarlett turned around to see where the quite obnoxious voice was coming from.

She looked around, checking if the voice was really talking to her.

'Who are you?' A woman who looked to be in her early thirties asked Scarlett. The woman looked like a slut, to be honest. She was wearing fishnet stockings, a mini skirt and a pink cropped top. Her hair was worn as a loose bun on top of her head.

'Who are _you_?' Scarlett snapped back.

'I'm sorry sweety, but I'm the one who's asking the questions here'

Scarlett raised her eyebrows. 'Ask Bane if you want to know who I am'

She started walking away from the woman, only to be pulled back on her arm. Scarlett flinched at her touch, pulling her arm back as quick as she could. 'Don't touch me' Scarlett warned.

'Funny, because Bane hasn't told me anything about you, and he tells me everything'

_Not everything, it seems_.

'I'm Sally' she introduced herself by putting her hand forward.

Scarlett didn't shake it, she wasn't really impressed.

'Scarlett' she replied bluntly.

'Okay, Scarlett. You'll soon find out, but I'm the one running this place' Sally started. 'If you want anything you should run it by me. I shall ask Bane what exactly you are doing here, but I'll report back to you later'

'Sure, I'm gonna go now' Scarlett started walking, putting some distance between her and this Sally-girl.

The hospital was a lot bigger than expected. With every turn she took she discovered a whole new wing with more new people. Some of them greeted her, while others just ran past her.

_I wonder what exactly he is planning for Gotham…_

Scarlett figured it would take some time before she knew any of the plan…

After a few hours of wandering around Scarlett returned back to her room. It took her some time to find it, she hadn't bothered to look what number her room had, but nevertheless she found it.

There was a plate of food waiting for her on the desk in the back of the room. Scarlett glanced at it but decided it wasn't really eatable. The one thing this place had in comparison with a real hospital was the food.

She started wondering who this Sally girl was. And what exactly did she mean with 'Bane tells me everything'… . Scarlett hoped she did not have to remind her what happened to the last girl who ran the place while Bane was away…


	8. Chapter 8

Still unsure whether I want to make Bruce a part of this story. Maybe when I run out of ideas I will add him! I'm really enjoying writing this story, so please stay with me, you can expect another update soon (hopefully). Please enjoy!

* * *

Scarlett examined herself in the mirror which hung next to the door. The bruises on her face were changing color, yesterday they were purple but now they were turning more into a blueish color. Her head didn't hurt as much anymore, but the thought of the punching still made her flinch.

That evening Scarlett roamed around the hospital again. Bane hadn't returned yet and frankly she was bored out of her mind. The TV in her room only showed three basic channels and she had already read all of the magazines she could find in this place.

With every corner she took she first checked carefully if Sally was walking there. She wanted to avoid her as much as possible. There was something about that woman that she did not like.

'What are you doing?'

Scarlett turned around to find a man standing behind her, smiling.

'Just checking if someone is there' Scarlett replied shyly.

'Ah' the man smirked.

'I'm Luke, by the way' he said, still smiling.

'Scarlett' she replied back.

Luke looked like he was about as old as Scarlett was. His hair was brown and shaggy. The outfit he wore was the same as all the rest of Bane's men. Black trousers, black tee topped with a bulletproof vest. In his left hand he held a gun. Scarlett had gotten used to the guns around her, they were seldom used when she was around, so there was no need to be afraid of them.

'Bane is coming back in a few minutes' Luke told her.

'He can wait' Scarlett replied.

'What are you looking for?' They started walking.

'Something to do'

'Ask Sally, she'll probably have something for you'

Scarlett grimaced. 'I'm trying to avoid her'

'You're not the only one' Luke answered.

'Who is she exactly?' Scarlett wondered.

'I'm not sure, but according to rumors she is getting quite cozy with Bane'

_Just like I expected_.

'Oh' Scarlett simply replied.

'But don't worry' Luke continued. 'If I were Bane the choice between you and her wouldn't be a hard one'

Scarlett started blushing.

'Thanks, I guess' she said shy.

Luke was the first one Scarlett met who seemed to be quite normal around here.

They turned at an other corner and Scarlett's room was already in sight.

'I better head back' Scarlett said. 'Talk to you later?'

She had to admit she actually really enjoyed Luke's company, even though she had spoken to him only for a few minutes. There was something about him that she really liked.

'Sure' he replied smiling.

_And he had a nice smile…_

Scarlett opened the door to find Bane already waiting for her. He had sat down on her bed. The curtains were drawn again.

'Did you speak to Sally yet?' she asked, closing the door behind her.

'So you have met her…' Bane replied.

'Yes, I did. Who is she exactly?' Scarlett said fierce.

Bane stood up from the bed, walking closer towards Scarlett. She could feel her body longing for him with each inch he got closer.

'Are you jealous?' he said somewhat amused.

'Should I be?' Scarlett didn't find this very amusing.

'No, you shouldn't' Bane replied. He placed one of his hand on the small of Scarlett's back.

'Will you please have dinner with me?' he asked her.

Even though Bane's mask was quite imposing and scary, his eyes told a whole different story. They were soft and almost sweet.

'Only if we eat pancakes, because I'm done with this healthy hospital food' Scarlett replied.

Bane laughed.

'You can have what you want'

They had dinner back at Bane's room, which was almost an exact replica of Scarlett's room. It was nice, they had been talking and laughing all night and it almost felt like old times. Even though this was the Bane she remembered, something about that Sally girl still wasn't right.

'I should go back…' Scarlett said. They had completely lost all track of time.

'or you can stay here' Bane replied suggestive.

'That depends' Scarlett teased. 'If I can have pancakes again tomorrow'

Scarlett stood up from her chair and moved closer to Bane.

'Of course' Bane pulled her on his lap and started running his hands up and down her body.

Scarlett didn't really remember how long she had been waiting for this, but it felt just as good as she remembered.

Their state of bliss was disturbed by Sally. Scarlett was still asleep when she suddenly woke up from a door opening.

She had fallen asleep with Bane on top of her. Scarlett had never felt more safe.

Bane too had woken up from the sound.

'Oh my god, Bane!' Sally said. 'I'm so sorry!'

Sally quickly put what seemed like breakfast on a table and left the room.

'Don't these rooms have locks?' Scarlett asked giggling.

'Apparently not' Bane replied. Even though he couldn't smile because of the mask, Scarlett could she the smile in his eyes.

Bane lifted his heavy body off of Scarlett's and put on some clothing.

He handed her the plate of food and announced that he was going to get some ointment for her bruises.

Scarlett took one bite of food but decided she wasn't really that hungry. Quickly she pulled on some clothes before the door went open.

There she was again, Sally. This was getting kind of annoying.

'Has Bane told you about me already?' Scarlett asked while fixing her hair up in a ponytail.

'I haven't spoken to him, yet, but I'm sure he will explain everything to me' Sally defended.

'Sure. So you told me if I needed anything, I had to run it past you?' Scarlett started. 'Would it be possible if you got me some books, you know, to read?'

'I will have someone go after it' Sally replied, looking at the untouched plate of food.

'Oh, and next time I want something decent for breakfast'

Sally picked up the plate with reluctance. 'You can't treat me like this' she said, narrowing her eyes. 'I'll let Bane know how you spoke to me!'

'Good luck honey' Scarlett said before practically pushing Sally out of the door.

_I really need to see to that these doors get a lock…_

Bane returned a few minutes after Sally had left.

'Sit' he said while squeezing some of the ointment on his hand.

Scarlett did what as asked and sat down, lifting her head so Bane could see the bruises.

'You really need to tell Sally to stay out of my business' she said while Bane was beginning to spread the ointment on her bruises.

'I'll talk to her' he replied, his eyes fixated on what he was doing.

'Why did you hire her anyway?'

'I had my reasons'

Scarlett decided to leave it at that, no point in fighting about it now everything was going so well.

'All done' Bane said.

Scarlett smiled and thanked him.

'Hopefully these will be the last injuries I get'

'It's your own fault, you need to stop getting yourself in trouble' Bane laughed.

'It's not my fault!' Scarlett defended. 'Somehow trouble always finds me!'

Scarlett moved closer to Bane and wrapped her arms around him, softly pressing a kiss on his shoulder.

She had never seen Bane without his mask. Frankly, she didn't even know if he could take it off… _ What I would give right now to kiss him, like a real kiss_.

'I'm glad I have you back' she whispered, her arms still around him.

'I hate to break the moment, but I really have to get to work' Bane softly released Scarlett from his grip and squeezed her hand a little before walking towards the door.

'Please stay out of trouble while I'm away' he teased.

'I will try my best' Scarlett replied smiling.

That same afternoon Scarlett met up with Luke. She had really enjoyed their short little walk and frankly she couldn't wait to see him again. It felt nice to have a friend, first she had Alex, but she was gone now.

They talked about Sally, what Bane's plan could be and a whole lot of other things. Scarlett also found out that they both really love the movie 'Pulp Fiction' so they spend a whole other hour talking about it.

Scarlett had laughed the whole time she was with Luke. They had really bonded this afternoon and she regarded him as a friend now.

Luke decided that he was going to walk Scarlett back to her room. (She wasn't really sure if she should return to Bane's room or her own).

'We should do this more often' Scarlett told him, still smiling.

Whereas she really loved Bane, she felt like she could laugh more with Luke. He was a lot less serious than Bane was.

'Same time again tomorrow?' Luke asked.

'Deal' Scarlett said before giving him a quick hug.

'See you tomorrow then!'

Luke smiled before turning around to head back wherever he came from.

Scarlett opened the door to find a pile of books on the table. Sally did work really fast, she had to give her that.

One of the books caught her eye. It took her by surprise. Did Sally mean something by this or was it a coincidence.

The book that Sally had brought her was 'The Scarlett Letter'.

Scarlett quickly hid the book under her mattress. Something about this wasn't right.

_Why does trouble always keep knocking at my door?_


	9. Chapter 9

If that wasn't quick, then I don't know what is! Enjoy this chapter and please review!

* * *

'Can I tell you something?' Scarlett asked Luke. '…and be honest'

They were sitting in what used to be the restaurant of the hospital. The kitchen was still in use, but the actual restaurant wasn't. Scarlett had found a nice spot next to the window where they could sit. After being in this place for a week she still hadn't gone outside and to be honest she really was longing for fresh air again, but the thought of entering Gotham put her off.

'Of course' Luke said, taking a sip from a drink which he had snatched from the kitchens.

'So yesterday I found a pile of books which I had requested. But the one that caught me eye was 'The Scarlett Letter'. Could this mean something?' Scarlett was dead serious when she told Luke this.

'What do you think it means?' Luke replied.

'I'm not sure, but this can't be a coincidence can it?'

It couldn't possibly be coincidence. The name of the book, and also the topic. Maybe Sally had seen her with Luke and suspected her of cheating… Scarlett could only hope that she was just imagining things.

'I'm sure it's just coincidence, there is no need to worry' Luke smiled again and gently squeezed Scarlett's hand to let her know everything was going to be alright.

'I hope you're right…'

'Don't worry about it'

'Why did you join Bane's men?' Scarlett asked Luke. She had really started to wonder why someone would voluntarily join them.

'I needed money and being brave is the only skill is possess' Luke replied. 'Plus I get to travel the world'

'Aren't you afraid you'll die?' Scarlett had seen Bane's men dying way too often.

'Personally I do not find that something to be afraid off' Luke said.

'I wish I wasn't afraid of death'

'You're comfortable with being in the same room with Bane, I envy you' Luke laughed. 'He is quite scary'

'No, he isn't' Scarlett giggled. 'You just don't know him as well as I do'

'I'm not sure I want to know him the same way you know him'

Scarlett shook her head, laughing. It felt like she had known Luke for years, they could talk about pretty much anything.

Looking at the clock, Scarlett realized she had to be back in a few minutes. She had promised Bane to have dinner with him.

'I have to go' Scarlett said, standing up.

'Can I speak you again tonight?' Luke asked, now also standing.

'I don't think so, but I'll see you tomorrow!' Scarlett said goodbye by giving Luke a hug. She could feel his hands on her back, but unlike yesterday, his hands slid down towards the small of her back. Scarlett let go of him, not sure what it meant.

'Bye' she said before quickly turning around to return to her room.

She found Bane already waiting for her.

'Sorry I'm late, but I got lost' She sat down on the chair opposite of Bane.

'Did you went outside yet?' Bane asked her.

There was already a plate of food waiting for her, and like she requested she had pancakes again.

'Not yet' Scarlett replied while eating the pancakes. She had to admit they were really good.

'You can't stay inside forever'

'I told you I _can _stay inside forever. And it's not forever, just until you decide to leave this place'

'We will leave soon' Bane assured her.

'Well until then I'm not going to leave this building.'

'I spoke to Sally'

Scarlett put her fork down, waiting for what Bane was going to say. She could feel her heart rate going up. She wasn't really sure what Sally knew of her, but she knew something.

'So she gave you some books' He continued.

'I know. They will keep me busy for a while'

It was quiet after that. Scarlett decided to brake the silence.

'Was that all she had to say?'

'Why? Is there something I need to know?'

'No' Scarlett replied quickly.

Bane raised his eyebrows suspiciously.

'No, seriously, there is nothing'

Scarlett finished her plate of food.

'Can we please go to bed soon, I'm really tired' Scarlett yawned.

'You can go, I'll be there soon'

Scarlett smiled faintly and let her arm brush against Bane's before taking off her clothes and crawling into bed.

She knew she wasn't going to be able to sleep until Bane was laying next to her. Luckily he was there quickly enough.

His body was immensely hot compared to hers, which suited them both. She liked the heat coming from his body and he liked the coldness coming from hers.

Scarlett was laying on her side. She felt a heavy arm sliding down her waist, holding her tight.

'I love you' Scarlett whispered, knowing that Bane was still awake.

She could feel Bane's mask digging into her hair. 'I know' he replied.

Scarlett woke up first the following morning, something that didn't happen often. They were still laying in the same position as they were the night before.

As carefully as she could she wiggled free from Bane's grip without waking him and walked towards the bathroom.

She must've been standing under the shower for at least an hour, she really needed it.

It bothered her how Bane never told her 'I love you' or 'I care for you' back. He always replied with 'I know'…

'You look sexy with your hair wet' Bane smirked when Scarlett got out of the shower.

'Then we should shower together more often' Scarlett replied grinning.

She moved closer to Bane and gave him a kiss on his cheeks, the only place on his face where his mask wasn't covering it, and sat down on his lap.

'Do you really have to go and work?' she asked him.

'Yes' Bane replied, caressing Scarlett's back.

'Just try and come back as quick as you can, okay?'

'I'll try'

Luke had something to do this morning, so Scarlett spend the whole morning by herself reading in her own room. She had put a chair against the door so no one could enter without having her permission.

She had been avoiding Sally as best as she could, but somehow she seemed to pop up everywhere. Scarlett always greeted her nicely, in an attempt to improve their non-existing relationship.

'Did you like the books I gave?' Scarlett had practically bumped into Sally while on her way to Luke's room. This was the third time today she just emerged from who knows where.

'Yeah, thanks' Scarlett replied dryly.

'I personally really enjoyed one of them, but I can't seem to remember which one…' Sarcasm was dripping of every word Sally said.

'That's too bad'

'Anyway, I have to fix something for Bane, he specifically asked me to do it'

'Okay, bye' Scarlett quickly made her escape for Luke's room. He would probably be back in an hour but she could read a book while waiting for him.

The Scarlett Letter was still hidden away under her mattress and she hadn't dared to touch it. Scarlett was still determined to find out what exactly Sally had meant with it.

'You're late' Scarlett grinned when Luke entered his room.

'We got held up, but I see you've made yourself at home' he pointed towards Scarlett, who was laying on his bed.

Luke extended his arm towards Scarlett. 'Come, I want to show you something'

Scarlett quickly moved off the bed and took Luke's hand. What was there possible to see in this place? Scarlett thought she had explored every last bit of it.

They darted through the corridor's to a door which was locked.

'I have tried opening it several times, but it was always closed' Scarlett said.

'Not if you have the key' Luke winked before opening it, revealing a staircase behind it.

'What this?' Scarlett said doubtful. She didn't now this building had another floor on top of it.

'Just trust me' Luke said, taking Scarlett's hand again and leading her up the staircase.

At the end of it there was another door, but Luke could unlock it with one of his keys. He let Scarlett open the door and followed close behind her.

Scarlett couldn't believe her eyes. She was standing on top of the roof of the hospital.

It took a few seconds to sunk in, but then she realized she was outside. The first thing that came to her mind was to go inside, escape. But she recomposed herself and took a deep breath. The air was sweet inside her lungs and she had a perfect few of the skyline of Gotham City in front of them.

'How did you find this?' Scarlett asked, not taking her eyes off the outside world.

'By accident' Luke admitted.

Luke was still holding Scarlett's hand. She could feel him moving closer to her, while pulling Scarlett somewhat towards him.

His hand let go of her hand and moved to her waist, while the other cupped her face.

Scarlett's heart started beating faster.

Luke moved his face closer towards her. 'You are so beautiful' he told her.

Then their lips met.

Scarlett couldn't quite believe it. She knew this was wrong yet she allowed it to happen.

She could feel his tongue wanting to enter her mouth. Softly she opened hers and she let her tongue meet his.

This was the one thing she really missed with Bane, kissing him. He had never been able to kiss her back. _He can't even tell me he loves me back_.

Then she really realized what she was doing and pushed Luke away.

'You can't do this to me' she said, angry.

_Why did I kiss him back?_

'Don't be like this, you wanted this as much as I did!'

'No' Scarlett defended. 'No, I didn't'.

Before she knew it Scarlett ran down the staircase.

_I'm never going outside again in this city, it only brings misery_…


	10. Chapter 10

Scarlett went back to her own room first, trying to get rid of the evidence that she had been crying. Again she placed a chair in front of the door, preventing anyone from coming in. All kinds of thoughts flashed through her mind. _Why did he kiss me? Why did I kiss back? Should I tell Bane?_

The latter part was the hardest thing to decide on. She knew that if she told Bane had would be extremely mad, and it would probably mean the death of Luke. _Why did he have to go and make things so complicated?_

She enjoyed having a friend, but she couldn't call Luke a friend anymore. She was alone again.

Scarlett practically slapped on the foundation in order to hide her red and puffy eyes. Next she quickly touched up her make-up and took a few deep breaths. Deciding to wait a few minutes before going to Bane, Scarlett turned to the nearest book she could find and started reading, hoping that it would distract her a little.

After half an hour she couldn't let Bane waiting any longer. She had to face him, whether she wanted it or not.

With her head hanging low she walked over towards Bane's room. Softly she closed the door behind her once she entered, hoping Bane wouldn't have heard her enter.

But sadly Bane heard everything. 'Where have you been?' he asked her quite annoyed.

Scarlett quickly had to think of an excuse. 'I got lost in one of those books Sally brought me.'

'Maybe I ought to take those books away from you then…'

He walked towards Scarlett, who was still standing near the door, and wrapped his arms around her waist. It was clear what he wanted to do, but after what happened Scarlett couldn't bring herself to do it.

'Not today' she said, pushing him away softly.

Within the second Bane's eyes turned from soft, to cold. It scared Scarlett somewhat, he had to know something was up, she never rejected him before.

'I'm going to bed' She wiggled herself free from his grip and walked over to their bed. Not bothering to undress she laid down, covering herself with blankets from head to toe.

She couldn't hear Bane moving, he was probably startled by her behavior. To be honest even Scarlett herself didn't really know what she was doing.

However, there was one thing she did know, she had to tell him before Sally was going to find out and tell Bane.

That night she didn't feel Bane's presence next to her. She wondered where he was, hoping he didn't want to Sally.

When she woke up the following morning her throat felt dry. She sat up straight to find the room empty. After trying to stand up, she had to sit down again, feeling to nauseous to move. Scarlett had become literary sick of what she had done.

She figured Bane wouldn't be back until later this afternoon, if he would come back at all. Until then Scarlett had the time to gain some confidence and think of what she was going to say.

Initially she wanted to stay in her room all day, but after some thinking she decided she wanted to see Luke. Scarlett had to know what he had to say about their little incident.

Dressed in the same clothes as yesterday and after downing a few painkillers she moved out of the door.

Luckily she didn't ran into Sally and Luke was easy to find.

Scarlett found him sitting in his room, without knocking first Scarlett opened the door and closed it softly behind her.

'Please explain what happened yesterday' Scarlett said to Luke, who was seated on the bed with his back towards her.

He turned around and a smile formed on his lips, much to Scarlett's despair. 'You know what happened' he replied. 'And if we were upon that roof, I would do it all over again'

'Do you know what will happen to you if Bane finds out!' Scarlett said, her voice trembling with anger. 'He will kill you'

'He won't, because you won't tell him' Suddenly Luke was dead serious. He stood up from the bed and moved closer to Scarlett.

Luke wanted to cup Scarlett's face with one of his hands, but she quickly moved away, hoping no one saw that.

'I have to tell him' Scarlett urged him. She couldn't wait too long before telling him, the longer she waited, the worse Luke's punishment was going to get.

'No you don't' Luke assured her. 'No one knows of this, except for you and I. And I know you want me as bad as I want you. No one has the key to the roof except me, we are safe up there.'

Luke had a loving look in his face, which confused Scarlett even more.

'I only kissed you back, because I can't kiss Bane, I got caught up' she told him. 'But I love him and I don't love you'

She moved a few steps back, allowing some distances between her and Luke, but the gap was quickly closed by Luke. Roughly he grabbed her wrist, squeezing tight.

'You listen to me. You don't love him. You think you do, but you don't' His hand squeezed her wrist even tighter. Scarlett tried to pull it out of his grip, but he was too strong. 'No one has to know about this… '

Luke held her a few seconds longer before letting her go. Scarlett hand immediately shot up to her wrist, rubbing the spot where he had pinched her.

Before she knew it, the hand which hadn't been hurt shot up in the air and hit Luke right across his face. 'You don't tell me what to do' she said, before storming out of the room.

As quick as she could she walked towards Bane's room, the room where she would be the most safe.

To her despair she saw that her left wrist was completely covered in bruises. She could never hide this from Bane. There was no other way but to tell him.

Scarlett sat down on one of the chairs, and waited patiently for Bane to come back.

After about half an hour she could hear footsteps approaching, causing her heart rate to go up dramatically. The door opened aggressively and Bane walked in, his eyes screaming terror.

He stopped for a moment to look at Scarlett. 'Are you going to tell me what happened yesterday?'

'Actually, yes' Scarlett said before taking a deep breath.

She still wasn't sure if she was going to mention Luke's name.

'Please sit down' Scarlett asked Bane. She would feel somewhat more comfortable if Bane would sit down, instead of towering over her.

'I'd rather stand' he snapped back.

'Okay… What if I maybe got kissed by somebody yesterday, that wasn't you…' Scarlett said, trying to sound calm even though she was kind of panicking.

Scarlett could see Bane's hands curling up into a fist and his breathing started to become heavier.

She couldn't bear to look him in the eye, she was too afraid of what she had done.

After a few seconds Bane still hadn't spoken.

'I know I shouldn't have done this and I totally regret it. He just caught me totally off guard and I didn't know what to do!' Scarlett tried to explain.

She ran her right hand through her hair, completely forgetting that her right wrist was completely bruised, and of course the bruises caught Bane's eye.

'What is that?' he said, grabbing her hand to examine the bruises. His hands were immensely hot compared to Scarlett's cold hands

'It's nothing' Scarlett said, trying to pull her hand back, but Bane held it tightly.

'Who did this?' His voice sounded demanding.

'I told you, it's nothing' Scarlett pulled her wrist away from his grip and quickly put in under the table.

Bane sighed. 'Was is the same guy you… kissed?'

It almost sounded like Bane had trouble to even pronounce the word: 'kissed'. He clearly wasn't happy about this.

'Yes' Scarlett replied, staring at the ground again.

'Tell me his name'

'I can't' Scarlett shook her head.

'What do you mean, you can't' Bane basically spat out the words.

'Because you will kill him'

Bane hesitated for a moment before speaking. 'And you care for him that much to spare him?'

That was a difficult question.

'No, I despise him, but do you really have to kill him? Can't you think of another punishment?'

Bane didn't answer her question, but he did speak: 'The problem is Scarlett, why didn't you tell me this yesterday?'

Scarlett looked up to look Bane in the eye, trying to find the right words.

'Because I have known since yesterday' Bane added, his voice stone cold.


End file.
